Archbishop Pascal Gollnisch: “On this Christmas night, Eastern Christians need hope”

Mgr Pascal Gollnisch is director general of the Œuvre d'Orient and vicar general of the ordinariate of Orientals living in France.

Christmas night.

Sweet night during which young and old alike come to soften in front of the nativity scene popularized by Saint Francis of Assisi.

A time of celebration and gifts, an exceptional commercial fortnight, to the point of blurring the Christian reality of Christmas in our country: the holiday becomes the pagan celebration of the winter solstice, where we try to forget the worries of the daily.

However, the Gospel account of Christmas places us, beyond the joy of the birth of Jesus, and beyond the message of universal peace, before a double drama:

The first is that of the exclusion of the holy family, which does not find a place in the common house, in order to allow Mary to give birth, and which must take refuge with animals to find some warmth.

Eastern Christians are still too often in a situation of exclusion because of the discrimination they suffer on a daily basis, to the point of sometimes being like pariahs in their own countries.

Cardinal Sako, in residence in Baghdad, again recently recalled the lack of full rights for Christian citizens.

Religious freedom, broader and deeper than the mere existence of places of worship reserved for families of Christian origin.

Much has been said about the LGBT issue in Qatar, no mention has been made of the ban on conversion to Christianity from

a Muslim, in any country in the Middle East, with the notable exception of Lebanon.

We could also mention the prohibition for a Muslim woman to marry a Christian, as well as many other forms of discrimination suffered by Christians, in different ways depending on the country, and which I cannot detail here on a case-by-case basis.

There is not yet a real place for Christians in the common home that is their own nation, in a certain carelessness of human rights defenders.

Christmas must beware of two errors: believing that by magic every problem is solved, or believing that in this world nothing can be tried and everything must be decided in heaven.

Bishop Pascal Gollnisch

Yet there are signs of hope.

It is probably less appropriate to condemn societies, which could have negative consequences for Christians, than to support positive developments.

The visits of Pope Francis are so many prophetic gestures whose consequences will be measured over time.

But they can already be perceived: thus in Iraq the outlook on Christians is gradually changing, and Christmas is becoming a day of celebration, a holiday, for all Iraqis.

And in other countries the feast of Christians is respected by Muslims of good will, while deep relationships are forged between theologians, in Amman, Lebanon and Baghdad with the Adyan association, or with the Dominicans in Cairo. , in Jerusalem or Baghdad, among other examples.

Christmas must beware of two errors: believing that by magic every problem is solved, or believing that in this world nothing can be tried and everything must be decided in heaven.

The hope of Christmas is an inexhaustible source of action.

The second Christmas scandal is that of the massacre of the innocent saints.

Already the powerful, whom Mary saw falling from their thrones, fear for the maintenance of their power and want to interfere in the religious event to better control it.

It is of singular urgency that the religions, the three monotheisms Jewish, Muslim, Christian, but also Hinduism, give themselves the means of their independence vis-à-vis the political powers.

We measure the difficulties caused by the mixing of genres, in Moscow or Beirut, in India or in the Gulf countries, or elsewhere.

Sometimes the religious leaders believe they find advantage in a privileged link with the political powers, but very quickly they run the risk of paying the price, forced into an allegiance before the powers of this world.

The message of peace to men of good will, to shepherds as well as to the Magi, remains the most powerful.

It speaks to the heart of everyone, Muslims or Christians.

Bishop Pascal Gollnisch

It must be recognized that the Catholic communion, universal, unique in the world as to its principle, allows the Catholic Churches to escape this trap of national communities.

The truth, and the truth alone will set us free.

In Ethiopia as in Russia, the spiritual forces, Christians, have not been able to prevent the violent wars of recent months, in any case the spiritual leaders of whom we would have liked a more prophetic attitude.

Exclusion from the common house, massacre of the innocent, but no despair.

The message of peace to men of good will, to shepherds as well as to the Magi, remains the most powerful.

It speaks to the heart of everyone, Muslims or Christians.

The vast majority of men want to live in peace.

Herod has no future.

The Christmas light, in the midst of darkness is the strongest;

it enlightens every man.